"Wait... is that Miss Y/N? Quick, get her before she runs off again!"
Somebody yelled, catching my attention. I sighed.
"Again?" I mumbled, beginning to run away. Just as I passed an alley, a strong hand grabbed me and pulled me in, covering my mouth with their hand.
Luckily, I knew it was Alhaitham.
I felt tears well up in my eyes. Every day I was in Sumeru City I had to run away from the people who were hired to take me back home.
My parents were very wealthy. They made me earn money too, so that I'd 'get into the family business' as young as possible. I grew tired of it very quickly and ran off.
Tears dripped down my cheeks, and the people ran past the alleyway without noticing a thing. Alhaitham let go of me and immediately noticed the tears.
"Hey, what's the matter?" He asked, taking my chin in his hand. I sniffed and shook my head.
"This is too much..." I wiped my eyes. "I might as well go to a different nation, they've seen me. They know that I'm here. I wish my parents would just forget about me, they earn loads already."
His eyebrows furrowed, and then he stepped so closely to me that my back pressed against the brick wall.
"No, you can't leave. Don't leave me here."
My gaze averted to the floor. Of course I didn't want to leave him, but my family were giving me no choice.
"I won't go too far, maybe like... Liyue? Or Fontaine? My family are here in Sumeru, I'm practically hiding in plain sight."
Alhaitham shook his head again, he almost seemed angry.
"No. You're not going, Y/N. I need you here. I'm not letting you run away to another nation just because you can't fight some greedy, brainwashed guards."
"Nobody ever taught me how to fight, how is that my fault?! Who's side are you even on, Haitham?" I yelled back at him. The salty tears blurred my vision - the guards must've heard our shouting, because they ran back and saw us.
"There she is!" One exclaimed, pointing his spear at me.
I blinked hard enough that another drop of sadness slid down my cheek.
"I'm sorry." I whispered to him, before
climbing and jumping over the fence.
"Y/N! Damn it!" I heard him kick a few boxes, but then it all became white noise. I was full on sprinting out of the city.
Branches were flicking in my face, as well as water splashing all over my clothes, but I did not stop running. It felt like hours had passed before I got tired, but in reality, I didn't get as far as intended.
The city was still visible but quite far back. I hid behind a tree and sank to my knees, awaiting for the moment my stamina would be back to normal.
I shut my eyes and tried to breathe as quietly as I could, but it was difficult after running for such a long time.
Before I knew it, I drifted off.
It was so quiet for the entire time I was asleep. Nothing disturbed me, and I also suddenly felt really comfy.
A while later, I opened my eyes.
Nothing around me had changed, except for the sky - it was already dark. I looked down and noticed two arms wrapped around my waist.
"Shhh, it's just me."
A familiar, drowsy voice whispered into my ear. I leaned back and sighed contentedly.
"Are they gone?" I asked. I realized that I was exhausted again after knowing that I was safe.
"Yes, darling. I got rid of them for you." Of course, the voice belonged to Alhaitham.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you, I'm just... sick of being chased 24/7."
"Ah, don't worry about it." Alhaitham replied, pulling me closer to his body. "Know that you're safe now. You never really wanted to leave Sumeru, did you?"
"No, not really." I admitted. "I love this place, the nature is beautiful. But I can't be a money making machine forever..."
He nodded.
"I understand. Then... let's find somewhere to go. In Sumeru, of course - somewhere not too far from the city, but far enough that the guards won't find us. And then in the middle of the night we can visit the city and spend mora to our heart's desire, yes?"
My heart must've done a somersault, because it was beating so fast. I smiled and agreed to his suggestion.
"Good. Now, you have to promise you will not leave this place without me. Like I said, I need you. I can't be here without you." Alhaitham repeated. He turned me around and peered into my eyes, his teal orbs penetrating mine.
"Yes, I promise."
I twirled his silver hair in my fingertips, watching in pure admiration as he leaned into my touch.
"Can I kiss you?" He suddenly asked, out of the blue.
"Please."
He pressed his soft lips against mine, and put one of his arms around my waist once again.
"Archons, I love you so much. Such a pretty one."
